“Being in tune with the Lord on earth prepares us for what He has prepared for us in heaven.”
Thoughts from daily Bible reading for today – February 28, 2021
Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction and do not forsake your mother’s teaching. Proverbs 1:8
I am thinking about my mom this morning and how to honor her on what would have been her 81st birthday. Below, I wrote an honest conversation between a son and his mom. Many of these ideas I learned from my mom, and some from other moms. Their conversation is about the positive traits the son admires in his mom.
Here is an example of a real conversation between a son and his mom:
Be Relationally Engaged—Son, relationships are your most valuable asset. More than money, because money does not have a soul or a sense of right or wrong—while people are precious. Every day invest in someone or someones: a kind word, a smile, a listening ear, a prayer or an extra $5, $10, or $20, just to love on them. Time is relational lubricant that keeps ‘em running smooth. Some relationships will suck the life out of you, others will give you life. Either way, make sure you are refreshing others and being refreshed yourself. Focus your love on people.
What about people who are hard to love?
Hard love can be the best love, because all your care is other centered. Some who are hard to love are incapable of loving, because their hearts writhe in pain—sometimes silently, sometimes loudly. Others who are hard to love are in a hard place, and overwhelmed by their fears. But your patient love will make a difference, even when it seems like there is no hope. Keep loving well.
Beauty Requires Boundaries— Son, good looks can get you into trouble, so learn from my mistakes. Not everyone who is charming is a good person. I have met men who I thought cared about me, but they were just concerned with fulfilling their own lusts and selfish agenda. I had to learn how to discern who really cared about me, versus who wanted to use me. Beauty requires boundaries.
What do you mean beauty requires boundaries?
I mean your friendliness to a friend can be interpreted as flirtatious, so keep an emotional buffer when you interact with the opposite sex. Use discretion to keep from crossing over a line that leads a person down a path of unintended expectations. Use good looks for a greater good.
Grow Your Spiritually Sensitivity— Son, we are spiritual beings made by God in His image, so center your heart and life around Christ. Without the fulfillment of faith, you will chase after interesting, but inferior, disappointing suitors for your soul. Spiritual sensitivity is the context of a life lived well. All other attributes filtered through faith in Jesus set you up for meaningful living. Faith in God gives you courage to persevere through adversity, and trust to be a generous giver with affluence. Being in tune with the Lord on earth prepares you for what He has prepared for you in heaven. Read the letters in red in your Bible and receive them as Jesus’ personalized love letter to you.
How can I make my faith my own and not just a cheap imitation of another’s?
You know your faith is your own when you know God, and not just about God. And, you know God when you have a personal relationship with Him. Similar to how you know about a professional athlete and admire her accomplishments, but you do not know her personally. In the same way, as you grow a personal relationship with Christ, you understand and experience how He loves you and how you can love Him well by loving others well. Personalized means yours.
“I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also” (2 Timothy 1:5).
Prayer
Heavenly Father, keep me intentional in reaching out to my mom and learning from my mom, in Jesus’ name, amen.
Application
Write down life lessons you are learning or have learned from your mom.
Related Reading
Deuteronomy 21:18-19; John 19:25-27; Ephesians 6:1-3; 2 Timothy 3:15
Start the new year with Boyd’s newest 365 day devotional book: Seeking God’s Heart
Worship Resource
6 minutes – Steffany Gretzinger & Bobby Strand:
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